The present invention constitutes a new and distinct variety of garden rose plant which originated from a controlled crossing in the summer of 1990 between an unnamed seedling and Bonica 82. The resulting seeds were planted in a controlled environment. The new variety is named xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99. The new rose may be distinguished from its seed parent, an unnamed seedling, characteristics:
1. The unnamed seed parent is a ground cover rose with bushy and spreading growth, whereas xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99 is a tall, bushy shrub with slightly arching canes; and
2. The unnamed seed parent has pink semi-double flowers, while xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99 has coral pink double flowers in large clusters.
The new variety may be distinguished from its pollen parent, Bonica 82 created by the same inventors, by the following combination of characteristics:
1. The pollen parent has soft pink flowers which are 60 mm in diameter with 35 to 40 petals while xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99 has coral pink, high centered, very double flowers which are 55-60 mm in diameter with 60-70 petals; and
2. The pollen parent is bushy and somewhat compact, while xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99 is a tall, bushy shrub with slightly arching canes.
The objective of the hybridization of this rose variety for nursery and garden use was to create a new and distinct variety with unique qualities, such as:
1. Abundant, coral pink flowers;
2. A tall growing shrub rose with uniform growth and a spreading habit;
3. Glossy and disease resistant foliage which requires limited maintenance, making it ideal for use in landscapes; and
4. Good growth on its own roots as well as a traditionally budded plant.
This combination of qualities is not present in previously available commercial cultivars of this type and distinguish xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99 from all other varieties of which we are aware.
As part of their rose development program, L. Pernille Olesen and Mogens N. Olesen germinated the seeds from the aforementioned hybridization and conducted evaluations on the resulting seedlings in a controlled environment in Fredensborg, Denmark.
xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99 was selected by the inventors in the spring of 1991 as a single plant from the progeny of the aforementioned hybridization.
Asexual reproduction of xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99 by traditional budding was first done by L. Pernille and Mogens N. Olesen in August 1991, at their nursery in Fredensborg, Denmark. Other subsequent propagations conducted in controlled environments have demonstrated that the characteristics of xe2x80x98POULaloxe2x80x99 are true to type and are transmitted from one generation to the next.